Strategic planning optimisation of "Napoli Est" water distribution system

The District Meter Areas (DMA) design is an innovative methodology of water networks management, based on the pressure patterns control and on the water flows monitoring, in order to reduce water losses and to optimize the water systems management. A District Meter Area is an area supplied from few water inputs, into which discharges can be easily measured to determine leaks. So, the DMA design represents an alternative to the traditional approach based on heavy looped distribution network. In the present paper the DMA design of the “Napoli Est” water distribution system (approximately 65.000÷70.000 customers), performed with the support of the Water Agency ARIN S.p.A., is discussed. After analysis of authorized consumption, by means of a monitoring campaign of water flows over the area, the system water balance was performed, showing significant water losses, as a consequence of high pressure patterns. This situation was confirmed by the high number of maintenance operations performed in the area during the year 2005. In order to characterize the piezometric heads on the network, ARIN S.p.A. supplied to the installation of six pressure transducers in the most vulnerable areas. The water level in the supply reservoir was also measured in order to estimate its influence on the network pressure heads. Hydraulic simulations were carried out with the EPANET software version 2.0 applied to a network layout resulted from the system “skeletonization”, achieved by eliminating out of order pipes, integrating pipelines of same diameter and roughness, replacing dead-end branches and small networks supplied by a single junction with an equivalent discharge. After the skeletonizated network was calibrated, several hypothesis of designing and implementing DMA to reduce physical losses were performed, providing adequate operating pressure of the system. Many numerical simulations were performed to guarantee adequate head pressure especially for peak hours demand, break of transmission mains and fire hydrant service. A chlorine residuals analysis was also effected, by simulating the transport and decay of chlorine through the network. District Meter Areas, therefore, were designed, and the corresponding hydraulic and water quality investigations and simulations were carried out. Six District Meter Areas were planned, assembling 14 intercepting valves and 9 pressure reducing valves to prevent the downstream pressure head from exceeding the set value, achieving a remarkable water saving, approximately equal to 34% of the physical losses, corresponding to 16% of system input volume

Mechanisms of responsiveness: what MPs think of interest organizations and how they deal with them

By employing individual-level data on MPs in 15 countries and 73 national and local assemblies, this article examines the conditions under which individual MPs are responsive to interest organizations. We show that MPs’ political values influence their responsiveness: MPs with more egalitarian and socially open values are more responsive to interest organizations. Moreover, MPs’ conceptions of democracy also matter in that more negative views of popular political involvement in democratic decision making are linked to lower responsiveness to interest organizations. Reliance on established ties with groups in society as well as support for technocracy have differential effects for responsiveness toward “old” and “new” interest organizations characterized by diverse social bases. These findings have important implications for democratic practice since they show how MPs are not all equally responsive to organized citizens as well as how different types of factors matter for responsiveness to “old” and “new” types of interest organizations

Post Hoc Analysis: Increasing Pre Kindergarten Students Letter Recognition Through use of Tablet Applications in a Private School Setting

Preschool students are preparing for kindergarten. This involves getting them ready socially, emotionally and academically. The kindergarten curriculum is demanding and the expectation is that students enter school knowing many aspects related to language arts. The problem at the preschool level is that children need to master letter recognition and letter sounds. The literature reveals that using technology before they are school age can be very beneficial to the preschool students (Kol, 2012). According to Nemeth and Simon (2013) it is important for teachers to have many instructional tools to meet the needs of their students. Using electronic tablets is a tool that can help promote the development of early reading skills. Shifflet, Toledo and Mattoon, (2012) showed that by just introducing four tablets into a preschool classroom the teachers observed the students had increased cooperation and collaboration. Participants in this teacher action research study include 24 four and five year olds in a private preschool setting in a suburban area. Using electronic tablets students practice letter and sound recognition as part of their daily practice. Student pre and post test scores on letter and sound recognition will be compared to analyze growth over time using electronic tablets and specific instructional applications that focus on early reading skills. References KOL, S. (2012). Evaluating the opinions of the preschool teachers on computer assisted education. Educational Sciences: Theory & Practice, 12(2), 897-903. Nemeth, K. N., & Simon, F. S. (2013). Using technology as a teaching tool for dual language learners in preschool through grade 3. Young Children, 68(1), 48-52 Shifflet, R., Toledo, C., & Mattoon, C. (2012). Touch tablet surprises: A preschool teacher\u27s story. Young Children, 67(3), 36-41

A social survey of the educational institutions for Africans in Cape Town

The specific aim of the survey was twofold, first to find out what educational institutions are "available" in Cape Town for Africans (whether they are numerically adequate, are sufficiently well suited and equipped, and are strategically located in proximity to pupils' homes; and how the social circumstances or the pupils and of the staffs affect school training); second; to find out to what extent the existing schools are "utilized'' by the Africans. In addition, the survey also considers the broader question of school education for Africans, which has become at present one of the major problems of the whole country together with the social and political re-organization of the Bantu community. To re-organize socially is first of all to re-organize mentally, a task which is proper of education in general and of school education in particular

Pre Kindergarten Students Increased Letter Recognition Ability Through the Use of Educational Apps on Tablets for Classroom Instruction

Preschool students are preparing for kindergarten. The kindergarten curriculum is demanding. Students are expected to enter elementary school knowing many aspects related to language arts. The problem at the preschool level is that children need to master letter recognition and letter sounds in order to prepare them to learn how to read. The literature reveals that using technology before they enter kindergarten can be beneficial in developing students emergent literacy skills (Beschorner & Huchison, 2013). It is important for teachers to meet the needs of all of their students. Using electronic tablets in the classroom is a tool that can help promote the development of early reading skills. Shifflet, Toledo and Mattoon, (2012) showed that by just introducing four tablets into a preschool classroom, the teachers observed the students increased their cooperation and collaboration skills with one another. Participants in this study include 20 four and five year olds in a private preschool setting in a suburban area. Using electronic tablets, students practiced letter and sound recognition as part of their daily routine. Student pre and post test scores on letter and sound recognition were compared to analyze growth over time, by using technology and specific instructional applications (apps) that focus on early reading skills. Additionally the researcher recorded and analyzed notes which described student behavior during instruction. Test scores indicated that 19 out of 20 students increased their mastery of upper and lower case letter recognition skills. Results from notes indicated that students were engaged in using tablets and motivated to practice letter recognition skills. Keywords: master letter recognition and sound, electronic tablets, pre and post tests, motivation, engagement

Une aporie de la démocratie: le blocage des politiques publiques par les nouveaux mouvements sociaux.

Cet article examine l'intervention des mouvements sociaux dans le système politique. Tout en portant l'attention sur le cas où les nouveaux mouvements sociaux sont source de blocage des politiques publiques, il tente de montrer comment cette intervention touche à l'équilibre qui s'établit dans toute société démocratique entre l'efficacité du système et sa légitimité. Les auteurs mettent en évidence que cet équilibre est affecté différemment selon le type d'intervention et, tout particulièrement, selon le type de blocage produit par les mouvements. Quatre types de blocages sont distingués, en fonction de la modalité et du résultat de l'intervention. Ces types de blocage dépendent de deux facteurs principaux, à savoir la structure et le fonctionnement de l'Etat, d'un côté, et la composition des acteurs intervenant dans le système, de l'autre. Le blocage des politiques publiques par les mouvements sociaux engendre une aporie centrale pour les démocraties occidentales, notamment pour la démocratie suisse, aporie qui a également des conséquences sur les mouvements eux-mêmes

Welfare institutions, resources, and political learning. Interacting with the State as an Incentive for the Political Participation of Long-Term Unemployed Youth

This paper examines the impact of interactions with welfare institutions on the political partici-pation of long-term unemployed youth in two cities. We assess the role of resource redistribution and of political learning on engagement in protest activities. We use a unique dataset of long-term unemployed youth to predict the probability that long-term unemployed youth participate in protest activities and be-come politically alienated as a result of their interactions with the state. Our study suggests that the impact of staid aid on political participation comes from providing services through the unemployment office and the social aid office rather than from direct payments. However, we do not find strong evidence revealing a process of political learning, as political alienation does not seem to mediate the effect of interactions with the state on protest. The most important finding of our study is that the connection between welfare insti-tutions and political learning is context-dependent. We find a differential effect of interactions with the unemployment office and with the social aid office across cities

Leakages and pressure relation: an experimental research

Leaks in water systems are presently a frequent and increasing event that involves cost increase and poor service, not compliant to quality standards and modern management criteria. The most recent data available in Italy, resumed into the report issued by Control Committee for Water Resources Use (CONVIRI), shows leakages with an average value of 37%. It is therefore important, for maintenance perspective, to investigate occurrence and evolution of water leaks and the analytical link between leaks <i>Q<sub>p</sub></i> and network pressure <i>P</i>, for a reliable calibration of water networks quali-quantitative simulation models. The present work reports the first results of an experimental campaign started at Laboratory of Hydraulics of Department of Hydraulics, Geotechnical and Environmental Engineering of University of Naples Federico II in order to analyze the features of <i>Q<sub>p</sub>(P)</i> relation, which are compared with other results issued in literature